Baggage

short film by Danis TanovicBosnia and Herzegovina/Italy, 2011, color, HD, 26ʼ30″

Synopsis

Being away for many years, Amir returns to Bosnia and Herzegovina in order to take custody of his parent’s remains. They were murdered during the war but their bodies haven’t been recovered so far. Amir also decides to visit the place of his birth. There, besides a ruined house, he also finds a forgotten friend and those who know about him more than he knows about himself.

Director’s Biography:

Danis Tanović, was born in 1969 in Bosnia. He studied at the Academy of Theatre Arts in Sarajevo until 1992 when he discontinued his studies due to the Siege of Sarajevo. At that time he joined a film crew that followed the Army of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Much of the captured film footage has since been used in films and newscasts documenting the Bosnian war. In 1994 he went on to finish his studies in Belgium during which time he made several critically acclaimed documentaries. He graduated in 1997, moved to Paris and began working on the script for “No Man’s Land” (2001) which won 42 awards, including the European Film Academy Award for Best Screenplay, the César for Best First Feature, the Palme d’Or for Best Screenplay in 2001 at Cannes, a Golden Globe and the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 2002. Also in 2002, he was one of eleven filmmakers to direct a segment of 11’09”01 – September 11, a film reflecting on the events of 9/11. Each of the eleven filmmakers was allotted 11 minutes, 9 seconds and 1 frame. In 2005 Tanovic finished his second feature film, “L’Enfer (Hell),” part of a trilogy, “Heaven” (Tom Tykwer, 2002), “Hell” and “Purgatory,” and loosely based on Euripides’ play “Medea.” In 2009, Tanovic directed TRIAGE. This English-language feature dealt with post-war trauma and starred Colin Farrell as the troubled photojournalist returning home from war-torn Iraq.. Tanovic’s latest endeavor “Cirkus Columbia,” opened the 16th Sarajevo Film Festival in 2010.